


we could be better than so many

by soulfriend



Category: New Mutants (Comics), X-Men (Comicverse)
Genre: M/M, One-Sided Attraction, Pining, Unrequited Love, Yearning, its about the subtext
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-21
Updated: 2020-02-21
Packaged: 2021-02-28 00:48:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 806
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22835044
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/soulfriend/pseuds/soulfriend
Summary: roberto has been in love twelve-- no actually eleven-- no wait twelve times.
Relationships: Roberto da Costa/Sam Guthrie
Comments: 8
Kudos: 37





	we could be better than so many

**Author's Note:**

> i have a lot of feelings about new mutants #7

“So… we’ve got a bit of a problem.”

Sam’s voice snapped Roberto out of his reverie. He’d been lost in thought, gazing absentmindedly out at the city lights from Sam’s balcony. It wasn’t that different from Earth, honestly. In fact, it was pretty much the same if you took out the flying cars and the fact that your best friend was settled in to married life on an alien planet and was raising his kid without you.

Roberto blinked at Sam. “Izzy said you can’t crash at our apartment.” Right. Of course she did. Roberto didn’t think there was anyone he disliked more at the moment than Izzy Kane (had she taken Sam’s last name? Roberto didn’t want to know and refused to entertain the concept). She was distant and controlling, and Roberto didn’t know what exactly Sam saw in her. Roberto kept telling himself that if his friend was happy, he should be happy, but he was having trouble convincing himself that Sam was entirely satisfied with the sudden marriage. It seemed to go against everything he thought he knew about his friend.

But of course, maybe Sam had changed in the time since they’d been apart. Maybe he’d moved on from their friendship, considered it a juvenile thing of the past.

Roberto sighed.

“Yeah, I figured.”

“It’s just she says you’ll never leave if you do.”

“I get it. It’s fine.” It definitely wasn’t. “She’s probably right.” She was  _ definitely _ right.

“So where are you going to stay?” Roberto felt the familiar, smug smile creeping onto his face, despite his efforts to suppress it. Sam really didn’t learn.

“Oh, I’m staying here.”

“What?”

“Yeah. Transfer of credits just went through. I bought the building.” Roberto held back a laugh; this was too good. “Tell Izzy the rent’s going up. And those are friend prices.”

“You bought the building?  _ Why? _ ” Roberto knew they both were aware of exactly why. But he came up with a weak lie anyway.

“It was the closest one to the imperial palace that was for sale.”

“Oh my God. You did this for Deathbird?” Right! Yes. He did this for Deathbird (who was Deathbird again?), and most definitely  _ not _ for Sam. Right.

He let a little truth spill out, just for fun. “And you guys. Don’t sell yourself short.”

“Deathbird.  _ Really _ ?” Sam looked aghast, and Roberto’s heart sank a little.

No, not really, any reasonable person could see that it was a “not really” situation. If he was being honest with himself, Roberto was only messing around with Deathbird to get a reaction out of Sam. If he was being  _ really _ honest with himself, it was to hide a part of himself that he was afraid of. Because deep down he knew the truth: he was in love with Sam Guthrie.

For how long, he didn’t know; he just knew that seeing Sam with Izzy sparked more than pity for his friend. Even when Sam had been with Tabitha back in the day, Roberto had been jealous-- just not jealous of who he thought he was. Looking back on it, his brief affair with Tabby had only happened because it was the closest to Sam he could get. Turns out he didn’t want to kiss Tabby, he wanted to be her.

The truth terrified him. He knew it could very well end the comfortable friendship they’d had all these years. But hey, maybe it was time he laid it all out on the table. Roberto had already been picking up small signs from Sam that he just wasn’t as invested in their friendship as he used to be. It was all falling apart. What more did he have to lose, really?

“I have to tell you something, Sam.” Sam’s eyes flicked up to his. Roberto’s heart jumped, and he took a deep breath. “I’m in love.”

“With Deathbird?”

“Yes.” Wait, did he say yes? No! Fuck! Sam had made chickening out all too easy. Roberto glanced back over. Sam looked deep in thought.

“Bobby?”

“Yeah?”

“How many times would you say you’ve been in love?” Goddamnit. Of course he had to ask something like that. Just couldn’t let it go. Sam’s eyes were searching, intense, almost, like he wanted to know something more.

Roberto kept his usual cool, cavalier facade. “Well, Sam, that depends on--” He stopped himself.  _ If you count you. _

“Not counting yourself.”

“Oh.” Roberto kept waiting for his heart to stop pounding in his chest, but that wasn’t going to happen. “Twelve. No, actually eleven. No, wait, twelve.” Roberto spluttered. He took another long look at Sam, and he sighed.  _ Fuck. _ He looked back out at the dizzying metropolitan expanse, then back at Sam. All the years they’d spent together seemed to catch up with him all at once.

Roberto’s eyes met Sam’s again. “Yeah, it’s twelve.”

**Author's Note:**

> come yell at me on tumblr [@samberto](https://samberto.tumblr.com)


End file.
